Joining Trip TM (recently acquired by Ctrip) and the ultra-luxury-baiting Zanadu, a new startup, Quafrica hopes to cash in by going niche. Tapping a growing interest in Africa among the more seasoned or adventurous of Chinese travelers, Shanghai-based Quafrica specializes in adventure tours to one of nine countries throughout the continent: Kenya, Tanzania, Seychelles, Madagascar, Rwanda, Namibia, Zambia, Botswana and South Africa.

The Quafrica.com service – in both English and Chinese – currently has travel packages that encompass six differing themes, such as “culture,” “work retreat,” and the more obvious “safari.” A culture-oriented trip, for example, could be something like its five-day “bushmen of the western Kalahari,” in which the intrepid travelers will live with – and learn from – the desert people in an authentic village. Everything included, that costs 72,000 RMB (US$11,300) for two people. But for that price you won’t be roughing it à la Bear Grylls, as Quafrica ensures customers that even in the vast Kalahari desert there’ll be all-included “house wine” and a “laundry service.”

Quafrica’s Dominica Drazal tells us that the startup has had seed funding from the Shanghai-based investment group TZG Partners (note: that site is down for me at present), and that the six-person team is “focused exclusively on the Africa business and then also leverages the management at TZG Partners.”

The “niche-ification” of China’s e-commerce market — whether it be startups focused on bespoke fashion, accessories, health or tourism — is an important development to watch. Progressing from the early “big-box” platforms like Taobao to specialized sites doing one thing (hopefully) well, niche sites may find themselves in a better position when and if the crowded luxury e-commerce market in China sees a broader industry shakeout. For its part, Tech in Asia notes that Quafrica’s next niche move will be a standalone site called Quoasis, which will be oriented around “wellness” — offering spa treatments, yoga and other therapeutic packages. (Probably a smart move, as therapeutic tourism is becoming an emerging trend in itself.)